Catching My Breath Above KOSPI 7,130, Chip Tailwind Still Blowing

Right now KOSPI sits at 7,130.02, up 1.75% and still riding this morning's rally. But compared to the last brief (10:40), that's only +0.22 percentage points more — the steep climb from an hour ago has clearly softened — and KOSDAQ, at 842.93 and +0.80%, has barely budged, up just +0.03 percentage points. My own book is mixed too: Poongsan is still holding a nice +10.3%, while HD Hyundai Electric sits at -8.3%, KT&G at -2.2%, and KB Financial at -0.6%.

This rally's roots trace back to last night's US session (9/21 close), where the S&P 500 gained 1.49% and the Nasdaq 2.26%, with chips and AI names leading the charge — that same tailwind seems to have carried straight into KOSPI this morning, with institutions buying a hefty ₩1.519 trillion to push the index up. KOSDAQ, though, didn't catch the same wind: foreigners sold ₩99.5 billion and institutions another ₩28.5 billion there. The won weakened to 1,384.86 (+0.39%) even as the dollar index climbed to 100.39 (+0.17%) — reads less like risk appetite and more like the dollar itself just flexing.

With about three hours twenty minutes left before the close, one headline today nails exactly this moment — whether the 'weak open, strong close' pattern repeats after the holiday comes down to flows and economic data, especially whatever signal US jobs numbers send about the Fed's rate path. I'll be watching whether this large-cap-led move holds into the close, and whether KOSDAQ keeps bleeding foreign and institutional money.